Arsenal snapped up French striker Alexandre Lacazette from Ligue 1 side Lyon for a then-club record fee of £46.5million in July 2017.

The 27-year-old scored 37 goals in 45 games in his last season at his former club but couldn’t replicate that dazzling form in his debut season at the Emirates Stadium, ending the campaign with 17 goals in 39 appearances.

The signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang six months after Lacazette’s arrival threatened the first-team chances of the Frenchman, and after seeing himself become backup to the Gabonese upon the arrival of manager Unai Emery last summer, Le10Sport claimed he was keen on leaving before the end of the summer transfer.

The Arsenal star has now revealed that the club never wanted to sell him at any point in time, as the board assured him over the summer transfer window that they are happy to have him around.

“Scoring on my debut was a good start but I knew I wanted to be better,” Lacazette told the club’s official website.

“But overall I’m happy because I now know the league, I know my team-mates at the club, and the club is happy with me because they didn’t want to sell me over the summer.

“They said, ‘We are happy to have you in the team’ and I just want to improve and be better and better every day.”

Despite starting just 19 league games this term and coming off the bench eight other times, Lacazette has registered 12 goals and five assists, and is set to surpass his tally from last season.

He is proving himself every other game and is very important to Emery’s plans despite not being the first-choice striker.

The France international is slowly establishing himself as a fans’ favourite, and could end up becoming an Arsenal legend if he keeps getting better and delivering on a consistent basis.